Unfinished Business
by mr. eff
Summary: Sequel to Forbidden. Lydia dreams about Beetlejuice and is unaware of his impending return. Beetlejuice, in turn, watches and waits. M for language and sexual content.
1. Dream of Me

Author's note: Thank you to all those who liked my story so far. I appreciate your support.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Warning: The rating changes to M once Beetlejuice himself appears due to language and minor sexual content.

"_How does it feel to be married?" _he_ asked with a smirk on _his_ face as _he_ carried her to _his_ bedroom, located inside one of the miniature houses Adam made of the town. _

"_It feels…strange, but not unpleasant. Especially since I'm married to you."_

_Lydia smiled up at her husband as _he_ looked down at her with an uncharacteristically fond expression in _his_ eyes._

"_And to think you refused me the first time," _he_ added, pretending to be hurt by the previous marriage incident that had occurred._

_Lydia laughed and loosened her grip around _his_ neck as _he_ gently placed her on the bed. She let go and watched from her position on the bed as _he_ crossed the room and closed the door to the bedroom. _He_ approached the bed and on all fours, _he_ made _his_ on top of her and looked into her eyes. She wrapped her arms around _his_ neck and brought _him_ down for a tender kiss. When they broke apart, she leaned in towards _his_ ear and whispered._

"_I love you, Beetlejuice."_

Lydia woke instantly in a cold sweat. She had the dream about _him_ again. She had been having the same dream since the moment she had graduated high school earlier this year and moved away to go to the University of Connecticut located in Stamford, Connecticut.

Her English high school teacher had encouraged her to major in English due to her writing skills, which had improved immensely since the suicide letter she wrote when she first moved to Winter River.

She wanted to leave the state but her love for the Maitlands and their love for her didn't allow her to leave them. If there was a way for them to leave the house and visit her without the fear of sandworms, she would have left, knowing that they could come with her, but they couldn't leave their house. She was also too emotionally connected to sever her ties with Winter River permanently.

She could have been living in a cheap apartment in a state far away from Connecticut and from her parents with the money she earned at the bookstore, which was a nice amount despite the small size of the store and the minute amount of customers.

Instead, she spent most of the money on a previously owned car that was in great working condition. Unlike her fellow college classmates that could afford extravagant things, she wasn't interested in driving the latest car that came out of the market and look 'cool' like they did.

All she had wanted was a car in good working condition that allowed her to travel from her small, one-bedroom apartment to her classes and then occasionally back to Winter River during her breaks or whenever she missed Barbara and Adam too much.

Her father had generously provided her with money to have an apartment to live in. He paid for half the rent since she didn't earn nearly enough to pay the whole rent AND to pay her insurance for the car. He also gave her extra money that she placed in her back account for emergencies.

She had refused at first to take his money but for once he wouldn't take no for an answer.

It seemed that since he realized that his daughter wasn't a child to ignore and that she was actually growing up and moving away, he had decided to act the part of the involved father and be a part of her life, even if it was short-lived since she moved to her new apartment soon after they found it and settled the negotiations with the landlord.

The place was close enough to the campus to not spend too much on gas to get there but far enough away from the idiots that attended. She refused to live close enough to hear them host stupid frat parties that would surely disturb her peace.

But the peace she had had been disturbed once the dreams started arriving.

On the night of her graduation, she first had the dream. When she awoke, she brushed it off like it was nothing because dreams are basically nothing but the conscious and subconscious pulling images together into what some believed to be a message. She thought it was all nonsense.

It could have been the aftermath of the thoughts she had been having after she began thinking about _him_ on the anniversary of the night that he tried the marriage incident all those years ago.

But progressively over time, that same dream haunted her again and again, disturbing her and leaving her shaking to the core.

The dream was always so realistic. Of course, there were tweaks and differences between each dream. In one dream, she had been naked under the covers of the bed _he_ had placed her on but in the next dream, she was wearing the same wedding dress she wore on the night of her almost-first marriage.

Little differences weren't important as the big picture was, which made all the dreams basically the same.

She was always married to _him_ and she always said those four words before she would wake.

If her reoccurring dream was because of her thoughts, it didn't make sense.

She certainly didn't love him. He may have intrigued her but he was a repulsive man. It didn't help that he was also dead, which would have made her a necrophiliac if she had even thought of _him_ in the way her dream suggested.

But for all his flaws, _he_ was attractive in a strange, ghoulish way.

_He_ had helped her, even if it was for a price.

Lydia shook her head, disgusted at the thought that there might have even been something akin to a positive emotion for _him_.

She pushed the covers off her and stood in the darkness of her room. She moved towards the doorway and walked into the kitchen to get a glass of water.

She took a glass from the drainer next to the sink and turned the tap on. She turned the tab that set the water to the Brita filter mode and filled her glass half-way.

As she turned the tap off and drank from her glass, a fleeting shadow caught her attention from the corner of her eye.

She froze and her heart sped up. She placed the glass on the counter and slowly turned to the place where she had seen the shadow.

There was nothing there.

Relieved, Lydia walked to the living room that was adjacent to the kitchen and lied on the couch. She stared at the water-stained ceiling and thought back to her vivid dream, not noticing a supernatural breeze that fluttered through the room, despite the closed windows, raising goose bumps on her arms.

She unconsciously hugged her arms to herself and curled on her sofa in the fetal position, where she eventually fell into a dreamless sleep.

From the Netherworlds, Beetlejuice sat on his broken, dirty recliner, watching amusedly at the sleeping Lydia.

He had returned from the Waiting Room a few days before Lydia had graduated from high school. The immense boredom he felt for being in there for god knows how long would have killed him hadn't he already been dead.

But now he was back! And my, what changes had occurred while he was gone.

The little lonesome, insecure Lydia had grown into a big, still lonesome, less insecure and exceptionally more beautiful Lydia.

She had grown her hair to mid-back so her black tresses spilled everywhere, casting a sort of dark aura around the 18-year-old. It made her pale skin look even paler, adding to the haunted look she had to her with the dark circles around her eyes.

Much to Beetlejuice's delight, she had developed curves underneath all the black, baggy clothing that hid it. He had pleasantly discovered that when she had gone to take a shower. Unfortunately, he had only seen her backside. Damn T.V. He couldn't control the piece of shit. If he could, he sure as hell would have preferred to see her front side.

It didn't matter now. She sure had a great ass though he wondered how big her tits were. His personal preference was huge knockers that could slap him in the face and leave him dazed. But he highly doubted Lydia could have grown those.

He had been watching the girl on and off for a while. When he wasn't terrorizing someone or offering his services to unsuspecting mortals, he liked to watch his Lydia.

From the moment they had almost gotten married, he had referred to her as his, since she nearly was his and he would be damned if he let her go.

After all, they did have a bargain they had yet to complete and he would make sure that it would be completed.

He smiled darkly at his plans and snatched at a fly that had been buzzing around his head for a while. The buzzing was irritating and he was hungry. He tossed the thing inside his mouth and chewed, lost in thought, picturing the sleeping girl writhing beneath him as he pleasured her.

He grew hard and cursed. His lack of companionship had left him very needy and there was no one around. He had grown tired of cheap hookers, regardless of how often he went to one since he had returned.

As he watched her more and more, though, he found himself ignoring the beck and calls of the lady friends he often hired to call him for his money for their services.

Tonight would be another night he would have to take matters into his own hands. Literally.

He chuckled at his pun as he unzipped his pants. He thought of Lydia undressing and started his ministrations.

Lydia awoke at the shrilling sound of her alarm clock as it broke her out of her dreamless sleep. She sat up and noticed that she was back in her bedroom, which was odd considering she had fallen asleep on the couch.

_I must have sleep-walked_ she thought as she got out of bed and started on her Thursday routine of getting ready.

She rubbed at her eyes and almost tripped on her shoes while she was on her way to the bathroom.

She paused for a second to glare at her shoes in the mirror before she grabbed her toothbrush and began brushing her teeth. She zoned out and thought about her plans for her last day of the academic week, which was today.

Her first class of the day was Psychology at 10am which gave her enough time to take a quick shower, grab some breakfast, brush her teeth again, and drive to the campus, where she would sit in her class and read until the professor arrived and began the lesson. After class, she would go to the library and get started on her homework until her next class at 12. After that, she had two back to back classes and then she would come back home, change, and go to work in a quaint little place called Ray's Delights.

Lydia's previous employer had a friend who owned a bookstore here in Stamford. Because of her connections, Lydia's previous employer gave Ray a glowing review about Lydia and asked him to hire her during the hours she wasn't in class.

Ray had been more than glad to hire Lydia as a favor to his friend. He didn't need her assistance running the bookstore but he seemed to enjoy her company and the little conversation they made from time to time.

Lydia also knew that he hired her so he would have more time to read his beloved books without being interrupted by a customer.

After work, she would most likely come back to her apartment, finish her assignments, eat some Chinese takeout, maybe watch television, and then go to sleep.

It was all pretty boring but it didn't matter. All her activities filled her day and didn't give her much time to think about _him_, which is probably why she dreamt about him instead.

Lydia finished with her dental hygiene and turned on the shower, ready for the day that lay ahead of her, blissfully unaware of the events that would take place that night.


	2. Fears and Jeers

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Thank you to all my reviewers! I'm glad you like the story so far. I'm sorry for the delay but I was lazy and I had a momentary writer's block.  
Your reviews, story alerts, and favorite listings seriously make my day and helped me to continue.  
Forgive me for any grammatical errors or changes. It's 2am and I'm tired.

And now without further ado, a new chapter.

* * *

To any outsider, Lydia's school day appeared to be uneventful. But from the moment she arrived to her first class, she noticed that two of her classmates were wearing clothing with stripes. Usually, superficial things like clothing and hair wouldn't attract her attention but when it was something that was relevant to him, she noticed.

Girls wearing zebra patterned clothing or animal prints were nothing new since they wore whatever the latest fashion was but these two particular girls were wearing plain black and white striped shirts. They weren't zebra prints; just stripes. The only difference was one of them had horizontal stripes and the other was vertical.

But considering the odd nature of her dreams, Lydia shook this off as an acute awareness of him and his taste in clothing.

Though as her day progressed, she noticed people wearing more stripes than usual. It was as if a memo was passed around that contained the dress code and she wasn't one of the ones involved.

The more stripes she saw, the more uneasy she felt. Dreaming was one thing but seeing a symbol of him away from her bedroom or Winter River was completely different.

Lydia shivered and hugged her books closer to her chest as she walked to her final class for the day. As she turned to go into her class, a familiar smile caught her eye and when she turned to look, it vanished. The hair rose in the back of her neck and she felt the uncanny sense of being watched.

Normally, she would have waved it off as paranoia but as she approached her seat, she smelled a familiar scent that she only attributed to her encounter with the paranormal. If she could see the dead, there was no doubt that she could smell them as well. But unlike the regular, familiar smell of the Maitlands, this almost bitter sweet odor could only be one person: Beetlejuice.

With Beetlejuice back, or close by, she knew something bad was going to happen. Deep, down inside she knew that something was wrong or would go wrong. The feeling of dread settled in her stomach as she tried to stave off the horror she felt, and the brief moment of ecstasy that followed.

After days and nights of monitoring his dear, sweet Lydia, Beetlejuice grew tired of looking at her through his beat up television screen. Sure it was entertaining to see her grow so confused and worried over her dreams involving him and their impending marriage but why did he have to restrict himself from contact?

He didn't, which was what made the whole situation all that more pleasurable. He had enough power to go into her environment and alter things but not enough power to actually see her without her saying the magic words three times, which he knew she would not do without a little prompting from his part.

And now, he decided that it was time he paid his plaything a little visit and remind her that he was not gone.

From the hours of monitoring her, he memorized her schedule so stood in the crowd, watching her as she moved along with the crowd to get to her destination.

Watching her reminded him of his plan which made him grin with dark humor. When she caught his grin and turned to see him, he disappeared and reappeared at her desk, still watching.

He did admit that the fact that she momentarily saw him did catch him by surprise but his Lyds was full of surprises.

As she approached the door to the classroom, a group of chattering adolescents blocked his view of her, which pissed him off.

_Fuckers_, he narrowed his eyes at them and vanished once again, to hover as a fly in the corner of the classroom.

His emotional behavior must have discharged an odor for he knew that she caught it when she stopped in her tracks and froze the same way that deer freeze when they see incoming headlights.

The prey knew the predator was watching. It was only a matter of time before he got what he wanted, and what he wanted was her to give him his freedom…and much more.

Perversion was his favorite game and his future sex toy sat in her seat, defenseless and just begging to be his.

But for the moment, he needed to save his energy for later because he knew that some strange forces were at work that would be in his favor.

The feeling of being watched gradually vanished and Lydia could breathe easier. But just because she could breathe easier did not mean that she could focus. Her mind was elsewhere and by the looks of her doodles, it was on him.

She looked down at her notebook and stared at a lifelike image of him as the serpent that scared his step-mother and father nearly to death and an intense wave of disgust washed over her.

She was acting like a little, predictable schoolgirl with a crush. A demented crush, but a crush nonetheless.

She flipped to another page in her notebook and wrote a list of things that she found horrible about him. She wrote about his manners, his rudeness, his trickery, and everything else that repulsed her but as she wrote, it turned into a list of appealing things, which she instantly crossed off and scratched away with her pen, nearly ripping a hole in her paper.

_I'm crazy. I must be crazy. It's just the loneliness. There's no one…just him. And no matter how delusional I sound, he wasn't all too bad._

Just as she was getting wrapped up in her thoughts, class was over and everyone bustled to get out of the door as if the place was set on fire.

_Is it that time again?_ she smirked as she imagined the place set aflame and the screams of horror that would surround the place.

God knew half the idiot here deserved it. Their complete disregard for others lives would lead to someone completely disregarding theirs.

By no means did this mean she was going postal and shooting up the place but she knew that karma would get them.

Unfortunately for her, she also knew that that would somehow tie in with her.

As she left the building and headed to her car, she heard the snickers that always followed her everywhere she went. She always ignored them since she knew they were emitted from dim wits without personalities but the comments were hard to ignore on some days. From her earlier uneasiness, the chuckles and snide remarks sent her way set her on edge.

"Hey freak! Why don't you go back to the graveyard where you belong?" yelled a boy.

"Yeah! You're gonna end up there! Y'know! Cutting yourself and all," said his buddy.

They both laughed.

"Are you listening to me, you stupid emo bitch?"

She ignored them and kept walking, keeping them in the corner of her eye in case they tried to approach her. She knew they were football players that could bench press three times her weight and they were notorious for their violence.

But since they were football players and part of the elite, nothing could be done about them, which she sure as hell knew nothing would get done if they injured her or even tried to.

"HEY! LOOK AT ME WHEN I'M TALKING TO YOU!"

Lydia unlocked her car and got in as quickly as possible, throwing her notebooks on the passenger seat after locking her car.

She saw the two jocks advance and she quickly turned on the engine and backed out before they could get to her.

From the looks of the rest of the student population, no one would come to her aid if she needed some and no one would dare stop the menaces that were now threatening her.

As she drove away, she heard them yell after her.

"You'll pay! Just watch. You'll pay."

Words like these would have rolled off her back like water rolls off a duck's back but today, these words made her uneasy. Something bad would happen.

Driving home passed without a hitch and so did getting changed and going to work. The earlier fear she felt passed and as she sat on the stool in front of the register, she thought about it.

It had been a while since she was actually threatened and almost had a threat of physical violence. But she knew that she wouldn't expect more from those close-minded idiots. Emo? I think not. And their comebacks were characteristic of brainless fools that are spoon fed responses by the idiotic masses of society that ostracize and alienate anyone who is remotely different from the rest, whether they are from a different way of life, a different society, or choose to express themselves in their own special way.

Wearing black made her feel comfortable. And as for the graveyard remark, she couldn't go out in the sun and get a tan even if she wanted to because she'd be burned to a crisp. Sleepless nights were to be thanked for the dark circles. But what would they know? They were fools who wouldn't dare to think with an open mind. One would have to have a brain to think.

The ding of the little bell rang from the top of the door and she looked up in surprise.

A customer.

She could tell a lot based on the choice of books and the person that came in.

Older women usually ventured off to the romance section to fantasize about the lives they never had with the men they could never be with.

Older men wearing ties usually bought books relating to the economy. The t-shirt wearing ones usually bought history books or books pertaining to an American accomplishment.

Children: kid sections.

Teens usually came in to buy teen magazines that were not sold here. Lydia personally believed that people who can't read buy magazines and from the looks of the people that came in to try and purchase magazines in a bookstore, her guess was not far off.

But this customer was a man in his mid-twenties. Brown hair in a buzz cut. Muscles bulged from his white shirt that hid little to nothing at all. Jeans and shoes that were apparently in style among gangster-wannabes.

_No one interesting_, she thought bitterly, swallowing down the bile that rose in her throat.

_He's not even looking at the books._

She noticed as he walked up and down the aisles that he stuck close to the register.

She eyed him with distrust as he stuffed his beefy hands inside his pockets and walked up to the counter, looking at something outside the window. He looked up momentarily revealing guilt-riddled brown eyes.

"Be careful. They're out there."

As soon as the near-whispered words left his mouth, he turned and left the store.

Lydia stood up quickly, fear stabbing her organs, and accidentally knocked her stool over as she peered over the counter to look out the window at the quickly darkening skies.

The kid was nowhere to be seen.

She slowly moved out from behind the counter and opened the door, hearing the bell tinkle in a way that suggested that it was completely unaware to Lydia's turmoil.

She stuck her head out and looked back and forth, from left to right, but the sidewalks were empty save for a mother and child walking across the street.

A car drove by and a few seconds later another one followed.

But there was no sign of the boy, or any danger.

She turned and gravely walked back to the register, trying to revel in the safety of her atmosphere but failing to feel anything other than a clenching of her stomach muscles.

Her mind reeled with the possible meanings of the warning, ranging from maybe the paranoid delusions of a steroid monkey to the two jocks from earlier.

As much as she wanted to believe it was the first, she knew that the jocks were most likely out there looking for her. How they might have found her was to be determined at a later date when she was safe and away from exposure but for now, all she could do was distract herself by rearranging books in the shelves and pretend nothing was wrong.

She brushed her hands down the front of her black sweatshirt and tied her hair back in a messy ponytail and set to work, momentarily praying for the night to be over so she could go home and pretend as if the day was just another ordinary, boring one.

Two hours passed and Lydia's prayers were answered as she put her register in the safe in the back and locked up the store. She took her keys out and placed the two biggest keys she had between her fingers near the knuckles, just as she had learned in self-defense videos she had to watch in high school, and she began to walk the two blocks it took to get back home.

As she was approaching the alleyway that separated buildings, she failed to notice the squeak of new shoes and the soles rubbing in the dirt. The silence around her made a ringing noise in her ear and the far off sound of traffic a few blocks away drowned out the rest.

What Lydia did notice was a set of hands grab her shoulders from behind the throw her against the wall of the alley.

"Oof!" The breath was knocked out of her.

"Nowhere to run. Nowhere to hide. You're mine now, bitch."

A hand grabbed her hair and knocked her head against the brick wall. Lydia felt excruciating pain and lights exploded from her eyes.

The hands knocked her down and a foot collided with her stomach. She curled in around herself and tried not to whimper but failed.

"Not laughing now, are you?" said another familiar voice.

The two laughed as a foot kicked her stomach again.

The jocks from earlier. They were there.

If she screamed, no one would be able to help her and it would only give a reason for her tormentors to torture her some more.

Jock number 1, the main one torturing her and the first one to start the attack, spat on her and said something else.

Lydia couldn't hear anymore. She was trying to protect herself from another possible injury so she failed to hear what they were saying.

At this moment, the only thing coursing through her mind was help and right as she thought of the only person that could help her, voice in her head told her to say it. It told her to say the words.

"Bee..Beetlejuice…" she croaked.

"What the fuck did you say?"

A rough pair of hands grabbed her face and made it turn to view her attacker.

"Beetlejuice…"

_One more_, she heard the voice whisper. _One more._

A backhand clouded the voice insistence. Then a slap.

She yelped and struck out, scratching the arms of the jock. The other one stood there, yelling and shaking his fist at her like an inbred hick.

The jock shook her.

_**SAY IT.**_

"Beetlejuice!"

The image of his face appeared in her mind. It looked just like his face did when she said his name that night.

_It's show time._

The world went black.


	3. A Wonderful Morning

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Another chapter for you folks.

* * *

Bright lights flooded her vision as her eyelids slowly peeled back as she tried to reenter the world. She closed them again to block the impending headache that slowly beat in the back of her head.

From the rest of her senses, she knew that she was in bed but how she got there was a mystery.

Lydia turned to her side and exhaled deeply, feeling comfort wash over her as she faced away from the window, going further into the darkness of the room and her mind.

"Good morning, sleeping beauty."

Her eyes shot open as she stifled back a scream at the face that was inches away from her own. Her body flew back in their own accord and she promptly fell off the bed and landed on her back, emitting a loud groan from her aching body.

"Whoa there. Better watch yourself. You took a bad beating. You wouldn't want to make it any worse, now would you?"

His leering face peered over the edge of the bed where she was five seconds ago.

"You're back."

Shock flooded her system. He only gave her a 'duh' look.

"H-how?" her voice shook a little in response to the shock.

"It's a funny story, actually," he began. "I was in the neighborhood when I decided to just drop in and see how my dear, old Lyds was doin'. To my surprise, I find that you got yourself in quite a pickle and being the gentleman that I am, I came to the rescue."

He made grandiose hand gestures, explaining his tale as if he was just a good friend who helped his buddy out.

Her only response was, "What?"

He narrowed his eyes in mild annoyance and looked at her as if she was an imbecile. Then his eyes roamed down and he smirked.

"I didn't take you as a pink flowers panty sort of girl."

Blood rose up to her face and she turned a bright shade of pink. She reached up and smacked his face away from the edge.

"What the fuck!" he yelled.

She then rose, grabbed the sheets, and wrapped them around her body like a toga.

Her rubbed at his face and began to glare at her but his anger quickly diminished as he observed her.

With her back to the window, the light shining forth made a halo around her body. Her pale face was framed by her black tresses, making her look even paler. If it wasn't for the massive blush that she had, he would have thought her dead. The black sheets draped her body and failed to hide the curves he studied as she slept. She would make a beautiful bride.

Beetlejuice congratulated himself on a great choice.

Lydia, distracted by her near nudity, gave him a look that could make buildings crumble and the skies to darken.

"You…you took off my clothes?" she said with as much distrust as she could. "You better not have touched me, you pervert."

His reaction was immediate.

"I am wounded! Is that how you thank someone that just rescued you? How ungrateful."

He put his hand to his heart and looked downcast, as if she had truly wounded him with her words. She knew he wasn't serious from the upwards tilts in the corners of his mouth and the mischievous twinkle in his eye.

She wrapped the sheets tighter around her and walked around the bed. She intended to go to the bathroom to get away from Beetlejuice. He followed her movements with his eyes as she walked towards the bathroom, reached in and turned the lights on. When he heard her gasp from seeing her appearance in the mirror, he got up and calmly walked towards the bathroom, making no noise.

He stood behind her and watched from the mirror as her hand rose and gently touched the bruise that discolored her forehead. She unwrapped the sheets from around herself and let them drop around her to reveal more bruising from the torture she suffered from last night.

Black and blue marred her shoulders, her stomach, and when she twisted, her back where the boys had grabbed and kicked her. Her arms had imprints of his shoes where she had tried to protect herself by shielding her stomach from their kicks and her legs had minor bruising as well.

Her shocked face turned to stone and the color left her cheeks, making her ashy white. Her demeanor might have been cold but her eyes were livid. She was pissed.

Her hands dropped to her sides and made fists. Beetlejuice, being a real supporter against violence, he smirked in his head, and placed his hands on her shoulders. Lydia looked up to the mirror and looked at the place where he would have been if he could have been reflected.

She didn't have to see him to know that he was looking right back into her eyes.

"Thank you." It was whispered, almost inaudibly, but the emotion behind it meant a lot.

He looked down at the top of her head and frowned. She was too serious and the last thing he needed was that. He needed to snap her out of it. So for the hell of it, he quickly reached down and unsnapped her bra, which was the kind that was snapped on in the front.

Her mouth dropped open and she covered her arms across her almost exposed chest. He laughed as she whirled around and almost landed a punch in his face. He was too fast for her as he ducked and ran.

"PERVERT!" she screamed after him as she heard him crash into the back of her couch and his non-stop laughter at her embarrassment.

With as much force as she could, she slammed the bathroom door and gripped the sink with two hands, seething at the intruder that had come back into her life in another chaotic manner. After a few moments of imagining herself grabbing him and drowning her in the bathtub, she composed herself, turned the taps to the shower on, and waited for the hot water to steam up the bathroom.

She then removed her clothes and got in, instantly going to the soap bar and sponge to try to wash the filth that was Beetlejuice and the violent acts from last night off her body.

Beetlejuice heard the shower running as he draped himself across her couch. It was quite comfortable. Much more so than his own broken down one. The one he had must have been at least a hundred years old and the worst piece of shit he owned. Scratch that. Everything he owned pretty much fit that description.

His black and white striped suit stretched across the expanse of his protruding stomach. He really needed to lose weight but that was for breathers. Once you're dead, you don't give a fuck anymore. Well, he didn't at least.

Lydia was even more beautiful in person than when he viewed her from his television screen. Jacking off to the image on the screen was like looking at cheap, five dollar porn in comparison to the real Lydia. The bruises that riddled her body accentuated her beauty better.

But he had much preferred that they were caused by him than by those two shitheads that took it upon themselves to harm her.

He hadn't meant for that to happen. If he wasn't the crazy joker he was, he would have almost felt guilt over the incident. He was close to it. Damn close to it when she thanked him for saving her which is why he had to distract her. The mighty Beetlejuice would not feel guilty over something he had no control over.

Sure he manipulated them a little. He just wanted them to notice her and to maybe say a few hurtful things that would cause her to run into a dark corner, write some ad poetry, think of him, and say his names. The same usual things that she would have done back when she first moved to Winter River.

He had not intended for those jockstraps to go psychotic and attack her. A little manipulation was apparently too much for their weak minds and they acted out. It was probably a fantasy of theirs to do it in the first place and thanks to Beetlejuice, they hurt Lydia Deetz. They would pay for it.

His mood dropped and the room became a few degrees cooler as he thought of the ways to seek revenge. It didn't take a genius to figure out that Lydia would want that and if he did it without her asking, she would be grateful and throw herself in his arms and ride him like a cowboy.

_Wishful thinking._

In all seriousness though, he had no qualms with dealing with these issues. He was actually itching to jam their jockstraps down their throats, cut off their tiny dicks, and shove steroid needles straight into their eyeballs.

His rumbling stomach distracted him from his thoughts.

He was hungry.

Lydia walked out of the bathroom with her dark blue bathroom wrapped around herself and a towel around her head. The smell of burning food in the kitchen prompted her to hurry right into the kitchen to check how much property damage she had. Clothing was not an importance right now.

She nearly laughed at the sight that greeted her eyes.

Beetlejuice was wearing a chef hat and an apron that read 'Kiss the Crook' and was attempting to cook breakfast quite unsuccessfully. The burnt eggs and bacon were proof of his attempt.

"I guess cooking isn't one of your specialties."

He turned to her and snorted.

"How did you know?" he mocked asked.

"Lucky guess," she replied back as she threw the burnt food in the trash, grabbed fresh eggs and bacon from the fridge, and began cooking for the both of them.

The delicious scent of sizzling eggs and bacon wafted around her but the smell of burning still remained.

"Wanna know a skill of mine that I'm much better at than cooking?"

"Sure," she turned to look at him only to see him wagging his eyebrows up and down, grinning like a wolf.

"Dear god. Do you think of anything other than sex?"

She curled her lip in disgust but the amusement in her eyes betrayed her as she turned off the stove and grabbed two plates from the drainer. She put the eggs and bacon on the plates and put them on the table, grabbing forks and putting them in their place next to the plates.

"Why, yes." He moved behind her and placed one hand on her hip and one of her arm. He leaned in real close and she could feel his body against her back. "I think of you."

She froze in place the moment he touched her and she thought back to her most recent dream involving him. He knew from the smell of pheromones her body was excreting that she was remembering the dreams and the passion in them.

As his hand moved downward, she seemed to snap out of it and she elbowed him lightly.

"Cut it out."

She moved to the other side of the table and sat down to eat. She avoided looking at him, almost believing that her face would betray her and reveal her thoughts.

She did not know that he knew about her dreams but he wasn't about to mention his little secret quite yet.

He sat down and began to eat like there was no tomorrow. Loud smacking sounds disrupted Lydia and her stomach turned at the image of Beetlejuice tearing into his bacon and eggs like a wild animal mauling a dead carcass.

"How about you chew a little before you swallow?" she commented to get him to act civilized.

He paused in his ministrations and looked at the mess he was making. Normally, he would have made a snide remark and made his actions worse through extensive exaggerations but if he wanted to get this broad to marry him and maybe join him in bed, he knew he would have to change a little. His mind revolted at the thought of 'civilized behavior' but he knew it would cost him his freedom otherwise.

If she said those three little words, he was toast.

When they both finished eating, Lydia looked up at him.

"What happened last night?"


	4. Unexpected Events

Wow. It's been over a year. I'm sorry, guys. There's just been so much going on and add a case of laziness/writer's block to it. I hope you enjoy this.

[Insert usual disclaimer here]

* * *

"I already told ya, Lyds. I was taking a nice stroll when I saw you lying there with two caveman hovering over you. By the time I approached them, they wandered off. Probably to look for their clubs.

'Me find club. Me like beating she-caveman'" Beetlejuice beat his hands across his chest like King Kong, attempting to imitate the jocks from her school.

Lydia narrowed her eyes in disbelief. That couldn't have been everything that happened. He must have done something to them. Why he wasn't bragging to her was a mystery. If she had been in the right state of mind, warning bells would have rung in the back of her head. But everything was mysteriously silent, which should have been a warning enough.

She took the empty plates to the sink and let water soak over them to make removing the grease stains easier. She turned and looked at him, clearly expressing that she thought he was full of shit.

He caught the look and just gave her a broad grin, revealing his stained teeth that probably smelled like boiled eggs, she imagined. She hoped that she would never find out what his breath smelled like firsthand. Memories of her dream crossed her mind and she quickly stomped those down. They sure liked to make their presence known.

Luckily the sound of the phone ringing broke them out of their mini staring contest. Lydia shut off the water and walked over her bedroom and picked up the receiver. Beetlejuice watched her walk away, noticing that she swayed her hips when she walked, which was a magnificent sight. He leaned back in his seat and imagined disrobing her and just taking her then and there. But that was a scenario for when he was alone.

He should have expected her question but it actually took him off guard. He had wanted to tell her that he pulled their insides out and made them do a funny dance as they slowly died but alas, that had not happened. The truth was that they ran off like little girls when he appeared. Sure, he had oozed out of the ground and formed this horrible striped creature, grinning wickedly and foaming at the mouth but it hadn't been _that_ scary. If he had done that to Lyds, she would have probably ignored it and walked away. Either that or stomped him back into the ground. Speaking of which, he was curious as to who was on the other end of the line.

He stood and creeped over to her bedroom, eavesdropping as he heard Lydia say, "Yes. Yes. I'll be there" to whoever was on the other line. Since it was the weekend, he figured it might be one of her little friends or maybe her boss though she wasn't scheduled to go to work for a while. Lydia cradled the phone and turned to the door and saw him leaning against the doorframe, trying to look nonchalant and uninterested but she saw right through his act.

"I have to go to work. You can stay here if you like."

Beetlejuice shrugged. "I have better things to do than wait around, y'know."

"Like what? Go to that demonic hooker house from the replica of Winter River?" Lydia sneered in distaste.

He smirked broadly. "Sounds like we're jealous! Don't worry, baby. There's plenty of me to go around." He winked lasciviously.

She wrinkled her nose in disgust and walked over to the door. She leaned in close to his face and smiled, taking him off guard. Quickly she jumped back and slammed the door, causing him to stumble and, from the sound of the crash, fall against the table that stood close to the bedroom entrance.

He cursed loudly and vigorously, shook his fist at the door and attempted to open the bedroom door only to find that it was locked. Locked doors usually didn't stop him, seeing as he wasn't alive, but he couldn't do anything rash and end up destroying his plans. Instead he jiggled the door handle and whiningly said, "You're a real bully."

He heard her laugh from the other side of the door and heard her say that he deserved it. As viciously annoyed as he was, he chuckled to himself. In just a brief period of time, he's had much more fun than he has had in years. The last time he enjoyed himself in the company of a woman, without sex, was in the pit called Winter River.

He let go of the handle, disappeared, then reappeared on the couch where he spread himself, grabbed the remote and turned on the boob tube. A few seconds later, Lydia walked out of her bedroom completely clothed and looked upon the sight of the slob on her couch and the mess that he caused with his fall. The table that had once been upright was knocked over and the books she had on it were all over the floor. If it wasn't for her rush to get to work, she would have picked up a book and tossed it at him.

_He could have at least picked it up_, she thought.

Shaking her head she walked over to the door and grabbed her messenger bag which hung on a hook next to the door. She opened the door and was about the walk out when a thought struck her.

She froze and slowly turned to the couch, her mouth agape and she stared in horror.

Beetlejuice's spidey senses stared tingling as he noticed that she hadn't left. There seemed to be a disturbance in the force. He peered over the top of the couch and noticed that she had turned into a statue.

"What? What's that look for?"

The question broke her from her horrified state.

"What happened to my car?"

Beetlejuice furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

"It's downstairs. Why?"

Dumbfounded, Lydia took a few seconds to respond.

"I didn't drive home last night. It…it should be at work."

He yawned loudly and stretched.

"I took care of it. You're going to be late." He laid back down again.

"The keys are in your bag."

She reached down to the bottom of the bag and felt the familiar cool feel of her keys against her fingertips. Without another word, she turned and closed the door behind her. She heard him guffawing at whatever was on T.V. and decided not to even bother asking him for an explanation later.

Beetlejuice waited a few minutes until he was sure that she was gone for him to shut the T.V. off and disappear back to the ungodly hole that he called home. Bugs scattered as soon as he disappeared, which was a shame because he could have really used a tasty snack about now.

She was probably wondering how in the world her car got back to her apartment. Little did she know that while she was unconscious, he took over her body and used her to drive back to her place. She'd be pissed if she ever found out that he possessed her for a little, because he could have done oh-so many things with a living body, but that would risk his plans which she was unaware about, and that would stay that way. As far as she knew, he was just a regular gentleman who looked after her well-being in her time of need. He snorted at the thought of himself as a gentleman.

Turning towards his screen, he saw him an image of Lydia being a good little driver by using her directional signals and slowing down at the yellow light. At the red light, she rolled up her sleeves to reveal the bruises marring her flawless skin. Waves of anger rolled over him at the reminder of the stupidity of the two morons.

He hadn't meant for them to physically hurt her but the desire to hurt her must have been present already for them to attack from just a little influence on his part. Of course it was his fault as much as theirs for injuring her but he would make sure that nothing like this would happen to her again. After all, she was his ticket out of his dingy place in the world. As long as they weren't married, he was still tied to the Underworld and the rat's nest that is his 'apartment'.

Though he was restored back to this world, she could send him back if she so desired, and he had to make sure that she wouldn't. He would play nice and be whatever she wanted him to be but once he got what he wanted, namely his freedom, she would be out of the picture. At least, that was _his_ plan.

Meanwhile, all he could do was watch, wait, and plan.

* * *

"Thank you for coming in on so short notice. I know that you weren't supposed to be in until four but my niece is going into labor and I want to be there for her when she delivers."

"It's no problem at all, really. I just hope the delivery goes well."

Lydia smiled at the older man bustling about, getting his things ready.

"It's been a slow day and there shouldn't be any problems but if there are, you know where to reach me and-"

Lydia helped him into his coat and let him ramble on. For a man in a hurry, he could sure talk when the desire struck him. It was understandable since he was excited but it was a rare moment when her boss rambled on like this.

"Just go on. I'll be fine," she cut in and walked him towards the door, where he shuffled about trying to get himself organized.

"Good luck with everything!" she said as he bustled out.

"Thank you. Have fun!" and with that, he left.

Business picked up half an hour later which Lydia was grateful for because it was boring when there was no one else around. If she had time to think about it, she would have realized that Beetlejuice's appearance back into her life really left an impact on her. But those thoughts were for another time.

* * *

"Have you felt anything odd lately? I have this weird tingling feeling in the back of my neck like-"

"-Like something ominous happened," Adam finished the sentence for Barbara.

They stood by the window, watching the rain drizzle down and the sky darken as a storm was approaching.

"Do you think she's all right?" Barbara asked.

"Of course. She's not our little girl anymore." Adam smiled, almost losing himself to the thought of a younger Lydia living in Winter River with them.

Barbara gazed at him thoughtfully, trying to believe his words but something just felt wrong. Something was off. She felt that some event had happened last night that was affecting the world, maybe even Lydia. She hoped that she was wrong. She wanted to believe strongly that she and Adam were being silly but deep down inside, she knew that Lydia was involved.

They both simultaneously looked out at the window again.

"I hope she calls soon."

"Me too, Adam. Me too."

* * *

The next time that Lydia looked at the clock it was half past six. In half an hour the shop would close and she'd be free to go home. It was an unusually busy day. She hadn't seen so many customers in this little shop since the time there was a rumor spread that a famous actor had come into the bookshop. People rushed in and crowded the place so see him that day. They were disappointed when they found that they had been lied to and some promptly left. Others stayed behind to browse and to buy some books. Today seemed like that, except for the lack of rumors.

Lydia turned to look out the window and saw that rain was drizzling down and lightning flashed in the distance. A storm was approaching.

_Curious. How did I not notice that earlier?_ she wondered to herself.

She continued looking out the widow until she saw something moving through the reflection of the window. She quickly turned her head and saw that there was one person perusing through the shelves. He was about 5'7'', brown eyes, short black hair, slender, and _pretty cute_, she thought.

She didn't remember seeing him in here before, or anywhere else as a matter of fact. Anyone remotely interesting would probably been seen at the new coffee shop that opened down the street, but certainly not in her tiny little bookstore. He looked up and caught her looking at him. She turned away and willed herself not to blush.

Shit. He was heading her way. She tried looking out the window again but she followed his movements through the reflection. When he stopped in front of her, she had no choice but to look at him. After all, she was a sales clerk.

"Hi. What can I do for you?" she asked, trying to hide her interest.

"Hi. I'd like to get this." He handed her a book.

She looked down and saw it was The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. Her shock shone through her eyes. He was an intellectual.

_Wait. This might be for someone else. No one here would read this._

"It'll be $25.99. Would you like a bag?"

He handed her the money and smiled at her.

"No. But I would like to know when you close."

"We close at 7."

"Wonderful," he grabbed the book and lightly touched her hand in the process. She tried not to pull back at the feel of the tingles that ran up her arm.

"I'm sorry. I know that I don't know you and you don't know me but I was wondering if you'd like to get a cup of coffee."

He smiled charmingly at her, looking bashful in the process. His eyes didn't sweep her form. He remained eye contact.

_Unlike other people_, she thought. She quickly vanished Beetlejuice from her mind.

"Uhm. Well, uhh," she stuttered, shocked from his interest.

"Oh I'm sorry. I should have known that you're with someone else." He turned to leave.

"Wait, no. I'm…I'm not with someone," she said bashfully. "I just…I don't know what to say."

"It's all right," he said and turned towards her again. "My name is Kyle and I just couldn't help but notice that you looked happy when you saw The Fountainhead so I thought maybe you'd like to go to that little coffee shop down the street and maybe talk about Ayn Rand."

Lydia willed herself not to stutter and turn away. He indeed was an intellectual, and he had a sharp eye.

She straightened her back, willing herself to be more confident.

"I'm Lydia. And sure. Coffee sounds great."

He reached out and they shook hands. His hand was slender but strong. He moved confidently but instead of repulsing Lydia, she as actually drawn in by it. Kyle wasn't shy. _Neither is Beetlejuice_ her mind interjected.

Anxious to stop that train of thought, she returned back to the present to find him in mi- sentence.

"-then I'll meet you outside the coffee shop at 7."

"Sounds great."

He beamed.

"I'll see you there."

She nodded and he walked out, leaving her bewildered at the strange encounter. She was going out to coffee. With a man. A _living_ man. Who was polite and actually seemed interested in her.

She looked at the clock again. Five minutes to go and then show time.


	5. Lydia's Men

**I don't know what to say. It's been over a year since my last update and I'm sorry. I lost sight of where this story was going and to be honest, I still don't know but I'm slowly getting there. I apologize that this is shorter than the previous chapter.**

**By the way, **_italics are for thoughts_**.**_  
_

* * *

The last five minutes of work passed like a dream. She just couldn't believe that she had been asked out by someone who appeared to have a brain. She's been on a few dates before but they we all rather dull, except for the time she was kidnapped by Beetlejuice, but that didn't count. The others had just wanted to see what was under her black garbs or to brag about hooking up with the goth chick. But Kyle seemed genuinely interested which was a refreshing change of pace.

As she was locking up, her hands began to shake with nerves and she fumbled with the keys to the door.

"Get it together, Lyds," she muttered to herself. "It's just a date."

She let out a big exhale and squared her shoulders, mentally preparing herself for any trick Kyle might do whilst hoping with all her might that this would be the chance of turn her dismal love life around.

She rounded the corner and spotted him in front of the coffee shop across the street, leaning against the wall and looking around casually. She unconsciously fidgeted with her sleeves as he caught her eye and gave her a lopsided grin.

Her stomach flip-flopped at the sight and she returned with a shy smile back.

"Hey there," he grinned as she approached. "How was work?"

She smiled back and responded, "Great. The last few minutes flew by."

"I'm glad. The last few minutes dragged on for me. To be honest, I was quite nervous."

Lydia's draw dropped at that statement. _Someone nervous over meeting her? What is going on?_

He laughed at her expression.

"Is that so hard to believe? A beautiful lady such as yourself should be used to the attention. I bet you must beat men off with a stick," he flirted.

She gave out an un-lady like snort and gave him a disbelieving look. _Yeah right, buddy. The only person she's ever had to beat off with a stick was Beetlejuice._ She suppressed the image of her bashing the ghoul's head in as she shook her head at Kyle.

"I've never heard that noise made before." He grinned as her cheeks flamed up. _Way to act like a moron, Lyds._

"I like it. I hope to hear it more often." He smiled and proceeded to hold the door open for her. She smiled bashfully and thought to herself that this was a great start for a date.

"So what is it that you like to do for fun when you're not beating men off you?" asked Kyle, taking a sip of his coffee.

_I like to talk to the dead_.

"Well, I like to write and…" _What the hell. I might as well say it._ "…and talk to the dead."

Kyle choked on the sip of his coffee and coughed into his napkin, trying to smother his raucous laughter.

"Are you okay?" Lydia asked, worried as she patted his back to smack the coffee out of him.

Kyle regained control of his breathing and he let out a few more chuckles.

"You're funny, Lydia. I like that a lot." He smiled warmly and she felt heat flood her cheeks.

"As are you. I can't believe I'm saying this but I'm having a great time."

"Me too."

Their conversation was interrupted by the impatient sigh of the barista who was not-so-subtly giving them the hint that it was time to close.

Kyle looked down at his watch and frowned.

"I suppose it is time to go."

Lydia looked down at her phone and saw the time. Beetlejuice would not be pleased.

Lydia began to rise but paused when Kyle rose and pulled out her chair for her like a proper gentleman. _Unlike someone I know._

"I would like to see you again. Here's my phone number." He scribbled down on a napkin and handed it to her. "Call me sometime and we can do this again."

He gave her another lopsided grin and held the door open for her once again and then proceeded to walk her to her car.

"Thank you. I'll call you soon when I'm not at work or at class," Lydia said.

"I'll be waiting most anxiously." Kyle leaned in and gave her a soft kiss on the cheek.

"Good night," and with that he walked away.

Lydia raised her hand to the spot where he kissed her and looked at his retreating figure. _Who is this amazing guy?_

_Me_anwhile, Beetlejuice was bored. Very, very bored. Being stuck in a room with a T.V. and nothing else was just as boring in the real world as it was in a model of a town. There was only so much of Jerry Springer and Maury that a person, living or dead, could stand before they grew weary.

"And I thought my life was bad," clucked Beetlejuice as he half-listened to a woman fight with her husband about whether he was the father of her child and not her cousin.

He considered going to his whorehouse but found no point in that. He had absolutely no interest in sex, at least with someone other than Lydia.

"Damn trash T.V. You're ruining my groove here."

Sighing deeply, he made his way to the fridge to look for entertainment and a little snack until his future snack came home.

Speaking of which, where was that little minx?

He looked up at the clock above the fridge and noticed it was ten o'clock already. A knot formed in his stomach but before he could explore the meaning on that, he heard keys rattle and then he heard the front door open.

Lydia poked her head through the door and found herself confused. She expected to see Beetlejuice lounging on her couch with eyes glued to the television screen with piles of half-eaten snacks around him like some kind of dirty throne, but she was met with Jerry Springer's bouncers breaking up a fight and an empty apartment.

She locked the door and made her way into what could potentially be a trap. Knowing Beetlejuice, he was definitely up to no good.

_Why can't I just come back from a great date to an apartment that isn't inhabited by a ghoul like normal people do? _

She turned on the living room lamp and placed her bag on the table next to it.

"Beej?" she called out but was met with silence.

Huffing loudly, she rolled her eyes.

"I know you're here. Come out, come out, wherever you are."

She peeked her head through the bedroom door and saw everything they way she left it. As she walked into the bathroom, she flicked on the lights and was met with a sight that startled her.

Her reflection in the mirror was of her but she had blonde hair and wore heavy make-up. She was also snapping her gum while wearing a lime-green tube top.

"That's not funny, you ass!" Lydia snarled as she stormed out of the bathroom. _So much for a great evening._

Beetlejuice appeared in the mirror and broke into a mad cackle. He knew that she wouldn't be frightened of monsters and horrific things that usually made people soil themselves, especially with all the experience she's had at Winter River. He also knew that she valued herself as an intellect and as a unique person so for her to see a reflection of herself as the opposite of what she is, that would truly terrify her.

_Score!_

He oozed up from the floorboards in front of Lydia and pouted as she narrowly missed colliding with him and moved out of the way right in time.

"What? No 'hello' kiss?"

"You wish!" she scoffed as she took out a frozen pizza from the freezer and placed it in the oven.

He leaned against the fridge and watched her with narrowed eyes as she played with the dials for the oven.

"It's late. Where've you been, Lydsy?"

"That's really none of your business."

"Don't make me worm it out of you," he said and wiggled his fingers at her in a mock-menacingly manner.

It was her turn to narrow her eyes at him and analyze what the odds were that he was joking. Deciding that it wasn't worth the frustration of fighting the dead man off, she acquiesced.

"I was out…with someone."

Her eyes glowed with warmth at the thought of Kyle, which caught Beetlejuice's attention. His jaw dropped and then clenched together quickly, his back teeth grinding in an attempt of hide the fact that he wasn't pleased. He quickly relaxed before she could pick up on his anger.

"Oh yeah? I could almost swear that you're trying to make me jealous."

"Well maybe if you hadn't tried to force me into marriage all those years ago and you were actually decent, I wouldn't go out with others."

He smirked.

"Are you saying I actually have a chance?"

She gaped.

"What?! No! I meant…arghhh! You know what I meant."

He approached her slowly, like a predator and she his prey. He leaned in close and felt a wave of rage course his body as he smelled that other man's scent on her. She froze in shock over his audacity and stilled when she felt his breath near her ear.

"Try as you might, you can't resist me. I know that deep down inside you want me to grab you and ravage you on top of the kitchen counter." She felt him smile and she frowned as he continued. "You and I are connected and as hard as you try to deny it, I know you feel it."

He softly placed his hand on her back and his fingers ghosted towards her sides down to her hips. She fought the wild side of her brain that begged for his touch and she forced herself to remain still.

"Lydia…"

His breath tickled her ear. She closed her eyes and gripped the countertop behind her, pleading to be released from his grip but fighting the side that wanted to remain in his spell.

"Your pizza is burning."

Her eyes snapped open at the unexpected sentence and she let out a gasp as she smelled smoke emanating from the oven.

"God damn it! You're such an ass!" She shoved him out of the way and quickly opened the oven. She wasn't sure whether she was upset over her pizza being burnt or the fact that he was ruining her lovely evening by somehow reading her deepest and darkest fantasies.

He remained unfazed by her violence and only watched with darkening eyes and a growing arousal at the witch that held his attention. In time she would be his and his alone. Until then, he would just have to enjoy it while he tore her apart piece by piece.


	6. Mind's Betrayal

**It's shorter than normal but at least I updated in under a year.**

* * *

Lydia went to bed that night still buzzing from her date with Kyle. She didn't know him too well but he seemed amazing. He was a gentleman, a great conversationalist, a real charmer, and nothing like Beetlejuice, except for the charming part. Well, maybe some other parts of him weren't bad either. Not that she liked Beetlejuice because she didn't. Nope. Not at all.

_So why are you comparing Kyle to Beetlejuice?_

"Oh great! Not only am I haunted by a dead guy who constantly wants sex but my brain is also haunting me as well. Wonderful!" Lydia groaned and rolled over, smothering her face deep in her pillow trying to suffocate those damning thoughts.

_Just think about it. You know that you feel something for that dead perv._

"I do not."

_Don't try to deny it. I am you, remember? Just face the facts. You like him._

"I swear…if you don't stop talking right now, I will punch you in the face."

_Hmph! I'd like to see you punch yourself in the face! That'd only prove that I'm right and you do like your former fiancé-by-force._

"Shut up."

Luckily for Lydia, the voice stopped but not before leaving her aggravated. She huffed and pressed herself further into the pillow. She could not like Beetlejuice. He was…well he was Beetlejuice! He was dead for one. He also tried to kill her parents and then he almost got the Maitlands killed. He was just bad news all around.

Not quite satisfied with her list of reasons as to why she didn't like Beetlejuice, she dozed off, allowing her that annoying part of her brain to take control over Lydia's love life.

For the next couple of nights, Lydia would find herself waking up to a cold sweat. She couldn't remember much of her dreams except for the feeling of lingering kisses all over her body and flashes of stripes in her eyes. She would then proceed through her day trying to remember the details, only to be left unsatisfied. Every time she came close to uncovering the things she could not remember, she was distracted and she'd have to start at square one.

She also had been too busy to call Kyle yet. He probably wasn't waiting by the phone like a teenage girl but she knew that if she waited any longer, he might not be interested anymore. But she was also really nervous and with the way her mind has been, she was beginning to doubt whether those events had actually happened despite the proof of his phone number. She would call him soon but first she had to gather her nerves and her sanity.

Beetlejuice noticed her hesitation and uncertainty and he took advantage of that. He could not have some random guy off the street move in on his lady. This boy would ruin everything. So Beetlejuice took this chance to try and get closer to her. He would occasionally say nice things, even if he managed to ruin it with a snarky or perverted comment afterwards. He even made her roll over on the floor laughing when he had accidentally set his head on fire while leaning over some candles. It had been purely accidental but to literally see her rolling on the floor laughing, even if it was at his expense, was worth it. He knew that one way through a lady's heart was through humor so even if he had to hack off his limbs, he knew it would be worth it once she became his and only his.

He would ensure that her boy toy was nothing more than a very faint memory that she would have to struggle to remember, just as she was struggling with her dreams. He wasn't blind to what was happening to her whilst she slept. He could hear her mumble in her sleep and whisper a whole sentence or two. Sometimes she even moaned, which made him extremely curious. He would float into her room only to be disappointed when it no longer continued. And when she'd wake to get her morning coffee, she would have dark circles under her eyes and she'd appear dazed for the day until he applied his charms to attempt to woo her.

Tonight, though, was quite interesting.

It started off like the other nights. She would thrash around in her sleep for a bit and then the mumbling would start. Beetlejuice was half asleep when the sound of Lydia's breathy scream woke him.

"Beetle!"

Oh shit. If she said his full name in her sleep, he'd be screwed. He immediately appeared in her room, ready to do anything to stop her when he was surprised by what he saw.

Lydia was sitting up in bed and staring straight at him. Her tank top was rising up on her belly and the sheets were all askew, exposing pale, creamy legs. She looked beautiful.

He snapped out of his stare when she said his full name, sending him into a mild state of panic.

"What? Are you okay?"

He approached her slowly as to not startle her. Who knew how she'd react to his presence. He noticed that her eyes where glazed over so she must either still be dreaming or she's half-awake. She held his stare and she raised her arms up and spread them in what looked like an invitation for a hug.

If he wasn't already dead, his heart would have skipped a beat or two. She wanted a hug?

"You want a hug?" He stood two feet away from her, puzzling over this situation. He could take full advantage of her state of mind and go along with whatever she wanted and maybe have his way with her but it was highly probable that she wouldn't be too happy in the morning. On the other hand, if he did nothing she might say his full name two more times and that would just not do. Plus, he would be missing a great opportunity.

She said nothing. She only kept her arms raised in an invitation that he accepted. As he sat next to her, her arms wrapped around him and she buried her face in his neck, relaxing into his embrace. Despite that he knew that she wasn't fully aware of her actions, he was surprised that she felt comfortable in his embrace. He was even more surprised when he realized that he also felt the same way.

He didn't know how long they sat there holding each other. It could have been a few seconds or a few minutes but he snapped out of it when he noticed her growing limp in his arms. She must have fallen back asleep. He looked down and only saw the top of her head that seemed to be snuggling with his shoulder. Smiling uncharacteristically, he moved to lay her back down on the bed and leave but her grip tightened around him.

"No. Stay."

His eyebrows rose to his hairline. She could not be serious. He gently attempted to pry her hands from his neck but she started choking him with her grip.

"Okay. Okay. I'll stay. I knew you couldn't resist me," he smirked.

Her subconscious must have heard his words because Lydia smiled at his statement. Careful not to crush her, he climbed over and lay beside her, causing her to snuggle closer to him. She was so warm and soft. His arms encircled her waist and pulled her closer to his dead body. He knew that there was no way in hell that she'd ever do this when she was awake but he hoped that this wouldn't be the first and last time that this happened. In fact, it would be detrimental to his, no – their -, future plans if this was a one-time event. She'd come around and he would make sure of that.

Feeling strangely at peace with himself and without any perverted thoughts, which could only be explained as a miracle from Heaven, he dozed off to the sound of her soft breathing and the warmth she provided.


End file.
